


Who You Are To Me

by CognizantCatastrophe



Series: WinterIron All The Time [6]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Anxiety, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Nightmares, No Sex, Oblivious Bucky Barnes, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Protective Tony Stark, Winteriron Bang, YouTube, YouTuber Bucky
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-17
Updated: 2016-09-17
Packaged: 2018-08-15 13:26:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 16,774
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8058106
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CognizantCatastrophe/pseuds/CognizantCatastrophe
Summary: Bucky started a YouTube channel to give himself something to do after he lost his arm in combat, and quickly became popular. Bucky is invited to a charity event, where he runs into a gorgeous man named Tony. Little does he know Tony is none other than Tony Stark, the richest man in the world.They manage to keep their relationship private from fans and media for a whole year before Tony blows it by interrupting Bucky in the middle of a live broadcast. Yeah, Bucky warned him, but… Tony missed that part.Art by Callacabforme and Knowmefirst





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Here it is, guys! My submission for the WinterIron Bang is finally up! I've been dying to post this since June. I hope you enjoy it.
> 
> Art is coming later today. I will add the links here when I get them.  
> Art of chapter 4 from [Callacabforme](http://callacabforme.tumblr.com/post/150548705527/chapter-four-of-who-you-are-to-me-for-the-winter)  
> Art from [Knowmefirst](http://archiveofourown.org/works/8063083)
> 
>  
> 
> _Special Note: Please note that I am not a medical professional and my descriptions of Bucky's anxiety and PTSD are based loosely on my own personal experiences with both._

Bucky was nervous.

He felt ridiculous being nervous. After all, he’d already been through hell. He lost his arm in the war, was abducted and tortured by HYDRA… and yet a damn military benefit was making him nervous.

Bucky had been shocked when he got the phone call inviting him. After all, the attendees mostly consisted of the rich and famous. While he wasn’t rich, he supposed he could be counted among the famous these days.

It had been three years since he was medically discharged from service, and two and a half years since he’d started a YouTube channel. At first, he did it to give him something to do. His gaming commentary gained him a few hundred thousand subscribers fairly quickly, much to his shock.

The first time he did a video where they could _see_ him, though, his numbers skyrocketed.

It hadn’t even been a gaming video like all of his other content. Instead, he’d been talking about his experience with PTSD. Everything had just exploded from there. It turns out people were more than willing to listen to a veteran talk about PTSD when he was a (surprisingly good) gamer with an advanced metal prosthesis.

Since then, he’d done a lot of interviews. He was actually getting paid _real_ money to make videos, which still sounded crazy to him. No, he wasn’t rich, but he’d also just finished paying off the last of his medical bills. Now that he could start saving, he probably wasn’t going to be hurting for cash like he was when he was growing up.

The interviews were one thing, though. What he was preparing for was another matter entirely. He’d been pretty outgoing before the accident, but ever since, he preferred to be left alone. Crowds gave him massive amounts of anxiety.

“You’re going to be fine.”

Bucky looked over his shoulder at his best friend, Steve. He owed the man his life. Literally. Steve had gone against orders and stormed the HYDRA base just to get him back, and when he was finally released from the hospital, Steve already had a bedroom set up for Bucky. Steve, along with a guy named Sam who ran a support group for people like him, had helped him recover.

“I feel like I’m going to throw up,” Bucky muttered. “I don’t belong at this event, Steve.”

“How can you say that?” Steve asked, coming over and fixing Bucky’s tie. “It’s a charity event to raise money for wounded soldiers and soldiers who suffer from PTSD. Explain to me how you _don’t_ belong there.”

Bucky huffed and glared at the other man.

“You’ll be fine,” Steve said, patting Bucky on the shoulder. “You’ve come a long way in the past few years. Sam says you’re more than ready. Look at all the interviews you’ve done!”

“Those were all one-on-one or Skype interviews,” Bucky rolled his eyes. “I wasn’t in a room with oh, I don’t know, a few _hundred_ strangers.”

“You’ll be fine. Besides, if anyone gives you a hard time, you can just smack them with that metal arm of yours. They’ll leave you alone.”

That drew a laugh out of Bucky. “Okay, you’re right,” he said, taking a deep breath. “I can do this.”

Bucky smoothed his tie and checked his hair in the mirror one more time before his phone buzzed. It was a text, letting him know the car the banquet had sent for him was waiting outside.

“Showtime, I guess,” Bucky said with more bravado than he felt.

“Just relax,” Steve reminded him. “You were invited because they already like you. You have nothing to worry about.”

“Right,” Bucky nodded, his metal fist clenching and relaxing. “Okay, see ya,” he said, walking out the door.

Outside was the nicest car Bucky had ever seen, with a man in a suit standing patiently next to the back door. “Good evening, Mr. Barnes,” the man said, opening the door for him.

“Good evening,” Bucky replied, resisting the urge to bite his lip – a nervous habit of his. He climbed in the back seat, jumping a bit when the door was closed behind him. In no time, the driver was climbing into the driver’s seat and starting the car.

"We will be at the banquet in approximately fifteen minutes if the traffic allows it," the man said. "Do you require anything before we depart?”

“No, I’m okay,” Bucky said. The man nodded and pulled away from the curb.

The drive to the banquet was silent, and Bucky couldn’t help feeling relieved when they arrived. The silence hadn’t done anything to calm his nerves. Unfortunately, the relief did not last for very long. There was a line of photographers waiting between the road and the door, as though they were waiting for celebrities. Then again, considering the event, that’s probably _exactly_ what they were doing.

The driver rushed around the car and opened the door. Bucky emerged from the car, trying to will his stomach to settle as the camera flashes began. He had only taken a few shaky (not that he would admit that) steps before a man appeared at his side.

“Hey,” the man said, placing his hand high on Bucky’s back and leading him towards the door. “You were looking a little pale there. I thought you could use a hand.”

"Thanks," Bucky replied, relieved when they made it through the door. "I'm Bucky."

“Oh, I know,” the man replied with a grin. “I love your videos, man! I’m Clint.”

“Nice to meet you,” Bucky replied, holding his hand out. Clint shook it, his grip strong. “I’m glad you like them.”

“Love,” Clint corrected. “They’re hilarious when you’re gaming. You’re pretty good; I’d love to play you sometime. You might actually be a challenge for me… although I’d destroy you at Mario Kart.”

“Are you another gamer?” Bucky asked, studying Clint more carefully. He didn’t recognize the man, but he hardly considered himself an expert on other YouTubers.

“Nah, nothing like you,” Clint laughed. “Look, I’d love to chat with you more, but I’m actually working security for this event. If you need anything, flag me down. I’ll be the guy lingering creepily in shadowy corners and staring at everyone.”

Bucky gave an amused grin and waved as the guy disappeared into the crowd. At least he knew the security at the event was friendly.

He looked around, feeling a bit lost. He didn’t know what to do, now that he was there. There was no speech for him to give, no assigned table he needed to sit at – it was more of a mingling event than anything, and he hated mingling.

“Okay, Bucky, your introvert is showing,” he muttered to himself. “You can do this. It’s fine. You can do this. It’s not a big deal.”

Bucky made his way to the bar, feeling like that was probably the safest place to go. The bartender smiled at him and asked what he would like. Since he hadn’t been a fan of drinking since he was discharged, he asked for water.

Nodding, the bartender tossed him a bottle of water.

Bucky stuck to the bar at first, but it wasn’t long before people started approaching him. Some of them wanted to talk about his gaming, but there were others who seemed entirely disinterested in that. Instead, they asked him about PTSD, which he supposed was natural considering the nature of the event. The constant flow of people coming up to him and asking him questions was both comforting and horrifying. Bucky hadn’t been around so many people at once in a long time.

After two hours, he was starting to feel like he was going to snap. There was still another two hours before the end of the event, and he was overwhelmed. When there was a break in the crowd, Bucky decided to excuse himself and try to find a moment of quiet.

He was on his way to a door leading to a garden when it happened.

_—CRASH—_

“Oh my god, I’m so sorry!” Bucky gasped, reaching down and helping the man on the ground back to his feet. He felt absolutely mortified.

“It’s okay,” the guy said, brushing a hand through his hair. “I wasn’t watching where I was going. It was my fault.”

“I wasn’t watching, either,” Bucky replied, blushing a bit when the guy looked up and their eyes met. _Dear lord_. The guy was _gorgeous_. The other man smiled, and Bucky felt butterflies erupt in his stomach. Oh, what wouldn’t he give to have that man smile at him like that again?

They stared at each other for a moment, and then the other guy’s eyes widened. “Oh, I think I got my drink all over you.”

Bucky looked down to see his shirt sticking to his chest, the crisp white shirt becoming almost translucent and showing off his abs. His jacket seemed fine since he had unbuttoned it an hour ago when it started feeling hot, but the shirt was definitely no longer appropriate. “Uh…”

“Come on, I’ll get you a spare,” the guy said, grabbing Bucky’s hand. The metal one.

“Oh, your hand!” He exclaimed, forgetting about the shirt and examining Bucky’s metal hand. Bucky blushed again as the guy continued to gush over it. His prosthetic was surprisingly sensitive; the man might as well have been caressing his flesh hand, considering how much Bucky felt. “Wait a second. This looks like… where did you get this?”

“The hospital?” Bucky said, phrasing his answer like a question. Immediately he felt stupid, but there was something about the other man that flustered him. Trying to cover for himself, he continued, “Um, you said something about a shirt?”

“Oh, yeah!” the guy laughed. “I’m Tony, by the way,” he continued, giving Bucky that smile that sent butterflies straight to his stomach again.

“I’m Bucky. Bucky Barnes.”

“Nice to meet you, Sexy,” Tony replied with a wink, tugging Bucky out of the main event room. Bucky felt his cheeks heat up again.

 _I haven’t blushed this much since middle school,_ he thought to himself. _This is ridiculous._

Bucky raised an eyebrow when they ended up in a private elevator. “Are we supposed to be in here?” Bucky asked.

“What are they going to do, kick me out?” Tony asked with a snort of amusement. “It’s fine. Don’t worry about it.”

“Okay,” Bucky replied quietly. He was further surprised when the man pulled him out of the elevator and into what looked to be an apartment. “Where are we?”

“Oh, I stay here sometimes when I’ve been working and don’t have time or energy to go home,” Tony shrugged. “It’s not much, but it works when I need it.”

Bucky raised an eyebrow. That was weird. What kind of person had a random place to crash in what was primarily an office building? If the apartment wasn't much, he wondered what Tony would think of his own place with Steve. The apartment was gigantic by his standards and decked out with the latest… well… everything. It was sparse, but everything looked incredibly expensive. Bucky was almost afraid to sit.

“Come on, I keep a few changes of clothes here for meetings and stuff in the bedroom,” Tony continued, dragging Bucky into the bedroom. Bucky’s stomach twisted, unable to block out the thoughts of Tony and the massive bed taking up a majority of the room.

Bucky jumped when Tony’s hand slid to his waist and slipped under the hem of his shirt. “See something you like?” Tony whispered, leaning in close and whispering in Bucky’s ear.

Bucky blushed again, embarrassed that he’d been caught staring at the bed. “Um…”

Tony chuckled and pressed a kiss to Bucky’s cheek. “God, you’re adorable,” Tony murmured. “I might have to keep you.”

Tony placed the fresh shirt on the bed and looked at Bucky expectantly. “So, want any help getting changed?”

Bucky laughed at that. “You’re not very subtle, are you?” he asked, sliding his jacket off.

“Not when I see something I want,” Tony replied, looking Bucky up and down. “And trust me, I’m loving what I’m seeing right now. A shy, sweet guy with a beautiful body – it doesn’t get much better than that.”

Bucky tried to fight the blush off, but it didn’t work. “You’re pretty attractive, yourself,” Bucky said, looking down nervously and fumbling with the buttons of his shirt. He didn’t normally have a problem, but with his shaking flesh hand, he couldn’t seem to unbutton the damn thing.

“Here, let me,” Tony said easily, taking the few steps forward until he was standing in front of Bucky. “Do you normally have trouble with the fine-motor stuff?”

“Huh?”

“The buttons, Sexy, the buttons,” Tony said, another chuckle escaping his lips.

“Oh, uh, no, I’m just…”

Tony looked up from Bucky’s chest, where he’d already undone the top three buttons. Tony smirked playfully. “Do I make you nervous?”

“Maybe.”

Tony laughed. “Please tell me you’re single.”

“W-why?” Bucky asked, eyes wide.

“Because we’re going to dinner,” Tony replied easily. “I didn’t have time to eat before I came, and you looked earlier like you needed a break. You’re adorable, and I’m doing that carpe diem thing Pepper is always telling me I need to do with my personal life.”

“Pepper?”

"She's my assistant. Or maybe she's my boss. She's bossy. I'm supposed to be her boss, but I think she got that backward somehow."

Bucky laughed at that. Tony was… Well, Bucky didn’t really know what to make of Tony. The confidence the man exuded was almost a slap in the face, but not necessarily in a bad way. Sure, he brought out the inner-teenager in Bucky that he thought was long-gone, but the man was attractive.

“So, single?”

“Oh,” Bucky said, having forgotten about the question. “Yeah. Very.”

“You shouldn’t be,” Tony said, and Bucky jumped in surprise when Tony slid the shirt off Bucky’s shoulders and picked up the fresh one. “Damn, you’re gorgeous,” Tony breathed. “Come on, turn around. If we don’t get you dressed, we’re not leaving this room, and I actually want to talk to you.”

“Talk to me?” Bucky asked, confused, as he turned around. Tony slid the shirt up his arms and over his shoulders, pulling Bucky back around to face him again. Tony began doing the buttons as Bucky continued to stare at the man, watching his nimble fingers do up the buttons with ease.

“Well, yeah,” Tony said. “Normally, I wouldn’t care, but you’re adorable. I’d like to see you more than once, and that usually requires at least dinner, so…”

“So you want to… get to know me?”

“Of course!” Tony replied with a grin. “So, what do you say? Dinner?”

“Sure.”

“Excellent!” Tony beamed. “Do you like Italian?” At Bucky’s nod, he continued, “JARVIS, reserve us a table for that little Italian bistro I like. They know which table I prefer.”

“Yes sir,” a voice sounded, making Bucky jump.

“What the hell?”

“Oh, that’s JARVIS,” Tony said as he grabbed Bucky’s suit jacket and helped him into that, as well. “He’s an AI.”

“Oh,” Bucky replied. “Oh, wait, I’m supposed to be here for another two hours, and then that driver was supposed to take me home. I can’t just— “

“JARVIS?”

“I’ll take care of it, Sir.”

“See?” Tony replied, looping his arm through Bucky’s and leading him back towards the elevator. “You don’t have to worry about a thing. Just let me take you to dinner.”

“Okay,” Bucky replied, still feeling a little unsure of himself. What was he getting himself into?


	2. Chapter 2

Bucky’s nerves started winding up again when he realized just how upscale of a place Tony had brought him to. “Tony, I think this is a mistake,” he said as he looked at the menu. “There aren’t any prices on this menu. They only do that at really expensive places, right? I can’t afford to spend that much money on something like food.”

“Nonsense,” Tony scoffed, taking Bucky’s hand in his and rubbing it with his thumb gently. “I’m paying. I invited you, so I’m paying.”

“But—“

“Nope!” Tony replied. “I’m the one that asked you on this date and I’m the one who picked the place, so I’m going to pay.”

Bucky blushed and looked back down at his menu, giving Tony’s hand a brief squeeze. “Thank you,” he said quietly.

“Adorable,” Tony murmured again as he brought Bucky’s hand to his mouth and pressed a light kiss to the back of it. “The light wasn’t good enough for me to tell earlier; is that an all-over blush?”

Bucky laughed at that. “I guess you’ll just have to find that out for yourself sometime.”

“Oh, I’m hoping for some time soon,” Tony purred, then sat up as the waiter arrived.

Bucky frowned when the waiter started talking in Italian. Before he could say anything, though, he was surprised to hear Tony replying to the man in an easy and flawless Italian.

“You speak Italian?” Bucky interrupted before he could stop himself.

Tony paused and smiled at him. “I wouldn’t have brought you here otherwise. Hell, my menu is in Italian. I had to request an English one for you because they don't normally provide those. Now, what would you like, Sweetheart?”

Bucky told him what he planned to order, and watched with fascination as Tony rattled it off in Italian to the waiter. The waiter nodded and said something else, then departed.

“How long have you spoke Italian?” Bucky asked.

“Oh, my parents traveled a lot, so they made me learn a ton of languages as a kid. Italian is one of my favorites.”

“I only speak English and Russian,” Bucky replied.

“Russian?” Tony asked, intrigued. “Now that one I don’t speak. Why Russian?”

“It was actually part of my military training,” Bucky replied with a shrug. “It’s a long story and I’m not really supposed to get into it even though I’m not enlisted anymore, but they needed me as a translator a few times.”

“So you were a translator in the military?”

“Among other things,” Bucky chuckled. “Being a simple translator wouldn’t really give me the arm,” Bucky said, gesturing to his prosthesis.

“Oh, you never know,” Tony smiled. “How long have you been out?”

“A little over three years,” Bucky replied just as their waiter returned with some wine. The waiter poured it for both of them and waited for their nods of approval before vanishing again, leaving the bottle behind. “It was tough at first, but I’m doing pretty well, now.”

“That’s good,” Tony nodded. “YouTube is worth it, then?”

“Yeah, it’s fun,” Buck said as he sipped some of his wine. “It’s pretty easy to just talk to my camera. The hardest part is when I have to do interviews.”

“Or the events like tonight?” Tony asked knowingly.

“Yeah,” Bucky agreed. “I’m not great with crowds or new people.”

“You’re doing fine with me,” Tony winked.

Bucky rolled his eyes. “If you call blushing like a teenage girl _fine_ , then yeah, I’m fantastic.”

“I think it’s adorable,” Tony mused, picking up Bucky’s hand again. “I’m so used to those events that they’re boring. You, however, are like a breath of fresh air.”

“Glad I could help,” Bucky grinned.

The two continued to chat until their food arrived. The conversation lulled while they ate, but it wasn’t awkward. Bucky couldn’t remember being more comfortable with anyone in his life except for Steve, but Steve was like his brother.

“So what is it that you do?” Bucky finally asked. “I feel like you know more about me than I know about you.”

Tony was surprised by the question. It was brief and he cleared his expression quickly, but not quick enough. Bucky still caught it.

“I have my hands in lots of things, but mostly, I’m in robotics,” Tony said with a shrug. “It keeps me pretty busy, but it’s fun.”

“That’s awesome!” Bucky grinned. “I never was the best with technology. I’m great with weapons and I’ve managed to somehow figure out all the stuff I need for my videos, but that’s about it.”

“Knew there had to be something wrong with you,” Tony said, his eyes teasing. “No one is that perfect.”

Bucky grinned and ducked his head. “Are you always this forward?”

“Are you always this old-fashioned?” Tony countered. “You opened the door for me, pulled out my chair for me… Sweetheart, no one does that anymore. Your style is several decades outdated.”

“Is that bad?”

“Hell no,” Tony laughed. “It’s actually refreshing. I’ve never met anyone like you.”

“My mom and my best friend’s mom were really old-fashioned,” Bucky shrugged. “They made us practice. Steve’s mom took me, and my mom took Steve. We had to pass their chivalry test before we were allowed to go on a date with anyone. If we forgot to open a door for them or pull out a chair, or anything else, we failed and had to try again. We had to keep practicing until we got everything right. They told us no boys of theirs were going to mistreat anyone on a date.”

“That’s sweet. My parents taught me how to perform in high society, but that’s about it.” Tony glanced at his watch and then back at Bucky.

“It’s getting late. Ready to get out of here?”

“What about the check?”

“They have my card on file,” Tony said dismissively as he stood. He held his hand out to Bucky and helped him up.

Bucky allowed the other man to walk him outside where a driver was waiting for them. They climbed into the car and Tony reached for Bucky’s hand so he could kiss the back of it again. “So where to, Sweetheart? I can take you anywhere.”

“I live at 1233 West Wind,” Bucky said, squeezing Tony’s hand. Tony reached over and tucked a strand of hair behind Bucky’s ear as he repeated the address for the driver.

And when they pulled up in front of his and Steve’s home, Bucky couldn’t help feeling disappointed.

Tony jumped out and walked Bucky to the door. They stood in front of the door and Tony reached up, placing his hand on Bucky’s cheek. “I want to see you again,” he said.

“I’d love that.”

“Hand me your phone,” Tony said and held his hand out for Bucky to place his phone in his hand. “Hey, this is a Stark model… from… four years ago?”

“Got it when I was discharged,” Bucky replied. “One of the few things I ever splurged on.”

“Doesn’t your contract allow an upgrade?” Tony asked as he put his number in.

“Yeah, but it would increase my bill and I’m cheap,” Bucky laughed. “I had a lot of medical bills to pay off, so luxuries like that have been on the backburner. Besides, it’s better than anything else I’ve ever had.”

“Shame, the latest model is a beauty,” Tony grinned. “You have my number, Sweetheart. If you want another date, let me know when. I’ll make it work.”

“Okay,” Bucky smiled. Tony turned to leave, and Bucky’s hand shot out and stopped him. Tony raised an eyebrow in confusion, but Bucky didn’t let go. “Can I kiss you?”

Tony’s expression shifted to one of surprise for the second time that night, and then his gaze softened. “Of course you can.”

Bucky stepped forward and placed his hand on the side of Tony’s face. He moved in slowly and pressed his lips to Tony’s. Tony groaned and slid his hand to Bucky’s waist, pulling him closer. The kiss was slow and sweet, but there was a promise of so much more. It made Bucky feel like his blood was fire coursing through his veins.

They pulled apart and Bucky placed his forehead against Tony’s. “I don’t want you to go,” he murmured. “I shouldn’t… I shouldn’t rush this. My mom would be horrified I’ve already kissed you on the first date… not to mention you’re the first date I’ve had since… Hell, I haven’t been on a date since before I joined the military. I didn’t think… I always thought the arm would…”

Tony reached up and placed a finger on Bucky’s lips. “Trust me, Sweetheart, the arm doesn’t bother me. I’ve seen the scarring around it, and I can still say that with ease. It’s part of you, and so far, nothing about you disgusts me or bothers me.”

Bucky reached down and took Tony’s hand, squeezing it gently. “Thank you,” he whispered. “But please don’t leave. I don’t want to move too fast, but that doesn’t mean we have to do anything if you stay. We could watch a movie or… You know what? This is stupid. I’m sorry. You can go. I’ll text you later.”

“Oh, no,” Tony said, frowning. “I suddenly get the feeling that if I leave after all that, you will work yourself up into thinking there’s something wrong with you and you won’t actually text me. I’m not letting you off that easy. Now, I think you offered me a movie.”

Bucky stared for a moment, before smiling. “Okay.”


	3. Chapter 3

Bucky woke with a start when an alarm went off. He turned it off on reflex before realizing two things. First, it wasn’t his phone alarm that he just turned off. Second, there was a comforting and warm weight on his chest.

He glanced down to see Tony fast asleep, head pillowed on Bucky’s chest with an arm draped across his middle. They were curled up under the comforter on Bucky’s bed where they had passed out while watching a movie, both of them in shorts and t-shirts. Bucky had loaned Tony some clothes to change into when they got inside the night before. He still remembered the warm feeling in the pit of his stomach when Tony had emerged from the bathroom wearing Bucky’s clothes, which were slightly too big on him.

That warm feeling continued as he watched the other man sleep for a moment. Tony looked younger and more peaceful in his sleep. Honestly, Bucky thought he was beautiful. He could have watched him sleep for hours, but he knew the alarm was set for a reason and Tony probably had to work. Bucky brushed Tony’s hair back and kissed the top of his head, his metal hand sliding gently along Tony’s arm. “Tony,” Bucky murmured, kissing Tony’s forehead. “Tony, wake up.”

Tony groaned, his face scrunching up as he cuddled closer to Bucky. Bucky chuckled and kept up his ministrations until Tony finally blinked, opening his eyes. “Oh,” Tony gasped. “So you _weren’t_ just a really fantastic dream,” he grinned.

Bucky laughed. “Nope, I’m real,” he assured. “Your alarm went off a few minutes ago. I turned it off before I realized it was yours. I’m sorry.”

“Are you kidding?” Tony asked, covering his mouth when he yawned. “That was an amazing way to wake up. What do I have to do to wake up like this every morning?”

Bucky laughed. “I’m going to make you some breakfast. Feel free to use the shower if you want. Hell, you can borrow the clothes, if you want.”

With that, Bucky jumped out of bed and made his way into the kitchen. He was just in time to see Steve wandering in, searching for coffee.

Steve wasn’t much of a morning person, so Bucky didn’t bother talking while he made bacon and eggs. Well, he didn’t talk until he heard Steve choking on his coffee when two arms suddenly wound their way around his waist and a kiss was pressed into his cheek. “Mmm, bacon,” Tony mumbled, stealing a piece from a plate where some slices were already cooling.

“No stealing,” Bucky said, smacking Tony’s hand lightly. “Steve, this is Tony. Tony, this is my best friend and roommate, Steve.”

“Morning,” Tony mumbled, grabbing a cup and pouring himself a cup of coffee.

Steve choked again. “You… Bucky… What… I don’t…”

Bucky rolled his eyes. “Oh, shut up and eat, Stevie,” he said as he placed the plates of food on the table. All three of them dug in without another word, Tony eating as if everything was perfectly normal while Steve stared at the two of them as though they had just announced they were aliens from another galaxy.

Tony had just finished his breakfast when his phone buzzed. “Oh, hey, my ride is here,” Tony said, cleaning up his plate. He placed his dishes in the sink while Bucky stood up and walked him to the door.

“Text me,” he said, pressing a sweet kiss to Bucky’s lips. “I don’t have your number, so it’s up to you. I really want to see you again, Sweetheart.”

“Okay,” Bucky agreed, kissing Tony again.

“Okay, gotta go, I’m late for a meeting. Bye!” Tony said as he rushed out the door and to the waiting car.

As soon as the door closed, Steve was on him.

“BUCKY!”

“What?” Bucky asked calmly, watching while Steve continued to sputter.

“Buck, do you have any idea who that was? What was he doing here? You KISSED him, man!”

“I did,” Bucky grinned. “We met at the banquet last night. And Steve, he was amazing. He took me to this really nice Italian restaurant where he spoke Italian with the waiter, and then we came back and watched a movie. He was so… he was respectful, Steve. I’ve had people give me a hard time before because I’m old-fashioned. He teased me about it a little, but he didn’t even mind. And then he gave me his number. He didn’t ask for mine. He gave me his, and said he really wanted to see me again, but it would be up to me.”

Steve stared at him for a moment, quiet and calculating. “You have no idea what you’re getting yourself into, do you?” Steve asked.

“What are you talking about?”

“Nothing,” Steve said, shaking his head.

“It’s never just _nothing_ with you, especially when you use that tone. You know something. What is it?” Bucky demanded.

“Nothing!” Steve insisted, then changed the subject before Bucky could question him again. “I just don’t want you to get hurt. Are you going to see him again?”

Bucky bit his lip. “I really want to, Stevie. But what if he was just being nice? I mean, everyone knows I’ve had issues with PTSD in the past, and the prosthesis is pretty hard to hide. What if he was just… I don’t know, trying to avoid hurting my feelings?”

Steve looked sad as he stood up and walked to Bucky, pulling the other man into a tight hug. “Buck, you’re an incredible person,” he said. “I hate how much you doubt yourself. You’re amazing, and Tony would be lucky to have you in his life.”

“You really think so?” Bucky asked, looking unsure.

“I know so. I think you should text him. In fact, if you’re going to do it, you should probably do it now before you lose your nerve. The more time you have to just think about it, the more likely it is that you’re going to scare yourself out of texting him at all.”

Bucky sighed. “I know,” he said. “So you don’t think it’s stupid?”

Steve gave him a comforting smile and clapped him on the shoulder. “I think if you’re this happy already, you should at least try. If you don’t try, you’ll always wonder.”

“You’re right,” Bucky said, grabbing his phone and sending a simple “I hope you have a good day” to Tony.

Almost immediately, he got a reply.

_This meeting is boring, but seeing your text already made it better. By the way, they’re horrified I’m in shorts and a t-shirt. -T_

Bucky’s eyes widened. “He didn’t even change before he went to that meeting he had!”

Steve snorted and muttered something, but Bucky ignored him.

_Won’t you get in trouble for that? -B_

_Pepper’s disgusted with me, but she’ll get over it. I’ll just send her flowers or something. -T_

“And so it begins,” Steve laughed, clapping his hand on Bucky’s shoulder. “Don’t forget to film another video today while you’re texting your new boyfriend.

“He’s not my boyfriend!”

_Who isn’t? -T_

Bucky was confused for a minute, then groaned. He’d accidentally activated the voice control on his phone and sent that to Tony.

“Steve, you made me send that to Tony!”

“How did I make you send it?”

“I was talking to you when I hit the voice button, so it’s your fault,” Bucky pouted.

Steve laughed and pat him on the shoulder before walking into his own bedroom to get ready for work. “I didn’t make you do anything!” he called. Bucky rolled his eyes and turned his attention back to his phone.

_Nothing! I didn’t mean to send you that. -B_

_Careful. You’ll make me insecure. Come on, who isn’t your boyfriend? Let me know who my competition doesn’t consist of. -T_

Bucky blushed just as Steve came back into the room, fully dressed for work. The other man laughed. “I’ve never seen you like this. Even when you dated that one guy back in high school, you didn’t blush this much.”

“Shove off,” Bucky growled, texting Tony back.

_I was talking to Steve.. about you… I accidentally hit the voice button. -B_

_Oh, Sweetheart, you’re adorable. -T_

“I hope you have unlimited texting!” Steve sang as he sauntered towards the door.

Bucky thought for a moment, then cursed.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Art for this chapter by the wonderful callacabforme on tumblr can be found [HERE](http://callacabforme.tumblr.com/post/150548705527/chapter-four-of-who-you-are-to-me-for-the-winter)

_One Month Later_

Bucky, Steve, and Clint were at a bar. Bucky had run into Clint a few weeks after the banquet, and the two had become fast friends. That night, Bucky had been moping on the couch when Steve had come home. He'd taken one look at Bucky and rolled his eyes. “Call that new friend of yours —Clint— and have him meet us down at that bar we like. I’m not letting you spend today like this.”

“I don’t want to go out, Steve,” Bucky had grumbled, sinking further into the couch. Steve had somehow snuck Bucky’s phone, called Clint, and the two of them had literally shoved Bucky into the shower and then dragged him down to the bar.

“Cheer up, it’s a party!” Clint crowed, throwing a dart at a target and hitting the bullseye. Again.

“Do you ever miss?” Steve asked curiously.

“Eh, not really,” Clint smirked.

“I’m just not really feeling like partying,” Bucky shrugged, staring into the beer he’d been nursing for the past half-hour.

“But it’s your birthday!”

“Yeah, and my boyfriend is on the other side of the world at some convention in Tokyo,” he sighed miserably.

“And that’s your fault,” Steve huffed. “You didn’t even tell the man it was your birthday. If I’d known that, I would have told him myself.”

“It wouldn’t have mattered,” Bucky shrugged. “I’ve known about this trip for two weeks, and Tony and I have only been together for, what, four? What good would it have done?”

“Oh, I think you’d be surprised,” Steve muttered into his own drink.

Bucky frowned. “Why do you always say stuff like that about him?”

Steve just snorted. “If you don’t know, I’m not going to be the one to tell you.”

“Well, tell me!” Clint said. “I hate not being in the loop.”

“Bucky, show Clint that picture of the two of you from last week. Clint, you’ll know what I mean when you see it.”

Bucky's frown deepened but he pulled out his phone and showed Clint the picture. It was of Bucky and Tony, Tony laughing as he shoved a handful of cake into Bucky's face. It had secretly been a birthday cake Steve had made, minus candles or anything that distinguished it as such. Bucky had insisted Tony not know about his birthday because he didn't want to risk the man feeling guilty about having to leave town and miss the actual day.

“DUDE!” Clint burst out, laughing hysterically. “This explains so much about his behavior lately. Oh, Bucky, you should have told him it was your birthday.”

“Again, business trip,” Bucky huffed.

Clint grinned. “Look, I actually know Tony pretty well, and he’d be horrified if you didn’t have a good birthday, especially because of him. I won’t spill your secret, but if he finds out later down the road and then finds out I did nothing to make you feel better, he’d _kill_ me. So I’m going to call some friends, and we’re going to have a real party, okay?”

Clint clapped him on the shoulder and disappeared.

“Clint knows Tony?” Bucky asked Steve, surprised.

“I didn’t know that, either,” Steve grinned, tapping something into his phone. “I just invited Sam to join us, since Clint’s turning it into a party.”

Within an hour, the part was rolling and Bucky found himself meeting some of Tony’s friends for the first time. The first one he met was an incredibly intimidating redheaded woman named Natasha, who he’d spent about thirty minutes having a conversation with entirely in Russian. Another was a quiet man named Bruce, Tony’s “science bro.” He was quiet and didn’t talk much, but his presence was calming and Bucky appreciated that.

Then, there was Phil. It turned out Phil was Clint’s boyfriend. He was also quiet, but there was a silent authority about him. Bucky suspected Clint had a wild streak a mile wide and probably needed Phil around to ground him.

He was having fun, he had to admit, but he couldn’t help feeling like something was missing.

 _“He misses you, too,”_ Natasha whispered in his ear in Russian. “ _Why didn’t you tell him about your birthday?”_

 _“I didn’t want him to feel bad about his trip,”_ Bucky said with a shrug. “ _He’s had the trip planned longer than we’ve been together. It’s not his fault he had to be gone for my birthday. I just miss him.”_

 _“What would you have wanted if he were here? A big, fancy party with the whole works?”_ She asked curiously.

 _“Why would I want that?”_ Bucky snorted in disgust. “ _The two of us on my couch watching a movie would have been more than enough to make me happy.”_

Natasha stared at him for a moment. Bucky held her gaze, even though it felt like she was looking into his soul and discovering every secret he had ever held.

Eventually, Natasha nodded and turned back to Bruce.

It was after four in the morning when the group finally departed and Bucky made it home. He felt bad for Steve, who was supposed to work in a few hours. Bucky helped the man to bed, set his alarm for him, and then made his way to his own bedroom.

It didn’t take him long to fall asleep. And while Bucky might have forgotten in the midst of the festivities what the day after his birthday meant, his dreams certainly hadn’t.

At one in the afternoon, Bucky sat straight up in bed, fighting back a scream as he remembered his arm being blown off. As he watched his team dying around him, while he could do nothing. As he heard their screams echoing in his head.

He bit back a sob as he grabbed his phone and called the only person he wanted to talk to in that moment.

“Bucky?” came Tony’s voice, muffled and rough with sleep. That didn’t register with Bucky, though. He was too far gone.

Bucky didn’t say anything, just choked as a sob caught in the back of his throat.

“Woah, Sweetheart, what happened?” Tony asked, suddenly sounding more awake. “Are you okay? Is Steve okay? Talk to me, Baby.”

“N-nightmare,” Bucky whimpered. “My a-arm. The guys. Heard it. Felt it. Tony…”

“Shhhh, it’s okay,” came Tony’s voice, a calm anchor Bucky clung to. “It’s okay. You’re safe, Bucky. It’s all over. You’re home and you aren’t in any danger. Just breathe for me. In and out. That’s it,” Tony praised when he heard Bucky’s shuddering breaths slowing. “That’s it, deep breaths for me, Sweetheart.”

“Need you,” Bucky mumbled, clinging to the pillow. “Wish you were here.”

“I can head home right now if you want me to.”

Bucky shook his head, even though Tony couldn’t see him. “You’re working. I shouldn’t have bothered you for a stupid nightmare.”

“Not stupid,” Tony assured him. “Never stupid. I’m serious, Bucky. If you need me, I’ll come home right now. Hell, if you just _want_ me there, I’ll come home right now.”

“I _do_ want you here,” Bucky replied, grabbing the sheets on his bed and wiping at his tears. “But you’re working. It’s okay. I understand why you can’t be here. I don’t want you to jeopardize your trip or your job because of me.”

Tony paused for a moment. Bucky almost glanced at his phone to see if they were still connected when Tony began to speak again, along with the sound of shuffling in the background. “I’m actually done with the business part,” Tony replied. “There’s a charity event the day after tomorrow that the company is holding and I was going to attend since I was already here, but I’ll just skip it. I didn’t want to go, anyway.”

“No, Tony, don’t put your job at risk like that.”

“Sweetheart, I’m not putting anything at risk,” Tony soothed. “Don’t you worry about me, okay? Just take it easy. I’m on my way.”

“Tony,” Bucky pleaded. “You don’t have to do this for me.”

Tony hummed, and Bucky heard a door shut. “I know I don’t have to,” he said. “But I want to, and I’ve already packed. In fact, I’ve already left the hotel room. I just need to check out and head to the plane.”

“But Tony- “

“No,” Tony said firmly. “I’m coming home, and when I get there, we’re going straight to your bed. We’ll put in a movie and then I’m going to hold you, okay?”

“Okay.”


	5. Chapter 5

Bucky was playing the latest Call of Duty live on Twitch – something he didn't do very often. At first, it was normal game commentary, occasionally yelling at the injustices of spawn-camping and how that last kill really should have been a headshot. Then he realized he hadn’t made a video since before his nightmares, and being who he was, he felt the need to apologize and explain.

“Okay,” he began as soon as the match ended. “I missed some videos lately, so I want to explain. I had another episode last week,” he began. “As you guys know, I haven't had a panic attack in over a year, but last week, I had another nightmare. This one was the night I lost my arm."

Bucky frowned and looked down at his metal hand, then held it up to the camera for a moment before the next match started.

“I’m proud of this prosthesis,” he said. “Sure, I miss my real arm, but this arm has become a part of me. It helps me remember what happened, but it also helps me remember just how far I’ve come since then. It reminds me of how much progress I’ve made.”

“But despite that,” he continued, “I still get the nightmares. And last week was a really bad one – one of the worst ones I’ve had in a long time.”

Buck reached over and took a drink from a bottle of water – something he liked to keep handy when he filmed videos like this. The bottle meant he had to take the time to twist the cap open, then twist it back on. It gave him an excuse to pause when he needed to compose himself.

“I called my boyfriend when I woke up,” Bucky finally said. “He was in Tokyo on a business trip and I woke him up in the process, but guys… he answered. I still can’t believe it. And then he talked me through it, and then he flew straight home. And when he got here, we spent a full 48 hours in bed watching movies and cuddling. That’s why there weren’t any videos for a few days.

“And I just… I’m having trouble processing it,” Bucky laughed. “It’s too good to be true, honestly. I never thought I’d have that, you know. When I lost my arm, I thought I was broken. I thought I was damaged and that no one would ever be interested in me because not only was I psychologically damaged, but I was physically damaged, too. But my boyfriend cut his business trip short because he knew I wasn’t okay, and he even held me through a few more nightmares once he got here.

“Anyway, I didn’t want to make this video to gush about him,” Bucky said, laughing again. “I just wanted to share a revelation I had. See, I thought I was broken. Mentally and physically, I thought I was broken and that no one would ever want to be with me. And then this guy falls into my life and he’s fascinated by my arm, not repulsed. He talks me through nightmares, rather than rolling his eyes. I never thought I’d have something like this again, and I’m sure there’s someone watching who feels the same way. And if it can happen for me, it can happen for you, too.”

Bucky wasn’t an expert on PTSD, but he knew how _his_ worked. And he knew he had mostly gotten over it after _lots_ of therapy with Sam and a few psychologists, but he wasn’t perfect. He figured the nightmares would probably always be there, but if he could just hang on to Tony, it finally felt like everything would be okay.

And of course, there were tons of questions from his fans about his mysterious boyfriend. Bucky had seen some of the fan sites speculating about who his mysterious boyfriend was. A couple had pictures of him and Steve at a restaurant or out shopping here and there, assuming that Steve was the one in question.

Bucky was grateful none of them had figured out it was Tony. There’d be a time for that, but he was worried about their still-new relationship coming under such scrutiny. He was falling for the man hard and fast, and he didn’t want to risk anything.

Bucky cut the broadcast off and turned everything off. Who was he kidding? The whole nightmare episode had pretty much sealed the whole “I’m in love with you” deal for him. There was no way around it. He was madly in love with Tony. Now he just had to figure out if and when he should say something about it.

When Bucky’s phone rang, he’d expected it to be Tony and answered it without glancing at it. He was surprised to hear Natasha’s voice come over the line, however.

“Oh, hey, Nat!” Bucky replied cheerily. “What’s up?”

“Does Tony know you’re in love with him yet?”

Bucky sputtered. “How did you know?”

“Oh, Honey,” Natasha sighed, and Bucky just knew she was rolling her eyes at him. “Clint was watching you just now, and I heard what you said about Tony. It’s so obvious every time you talk about him. I see it every time you look at him, too.”

“I didn’t mean to fall this fast,” he confessed. “I really didn’t. It just happened.”

“Tony’s pretty irresistible when he wants to be,” Natasha hummed.

“Please don’t tell him,” Bucky pleaded.

“Why would I tell him? That’s your news to share. Which, by the way, you should. You’re really good for Tony. He’s so happy. He’s finally stopped waiting for you to do what all of his ex’s do and he’s… happy.”

“I love him, Nat,” Bucky sighed. “It blows my mind that he’s wasted so much time with me because he deserves so much more than I can give him, but I’m not strong enough to set him free.”

“Oh please,” Natasha scoffed. “Bucky, Tony has everything he needs. He has everything he wants. He just needed someone to share it with.”

“We’ll just have to agree to disagree,” Bucky replied. “Did you need anything else? I actually need to go get ready for a date with Tony tonight.”

“Nah, that was it. Go have fun. And tell him how you feel!”

“But it’s only been two months. Isn’t that kind of fast?”

“Not if it’s true,” she said. “Trust me. Tony will be happy.”

“I’ll think about it.”


	6. Chapter 6

Bucky and Tony had officially been dating for six months. For the last five months, he’d been dealing with the fans begging for more information on his relationship. After all, he’d barely made it a few weeks before he accidentally said “Last night, my boyfriend and I…” in a video, and his fans freaked out. He’d even jumped in popularity seemingly overnight. For some reason, the fact that he was a former soldier, a gamer, and had openly admitted he had a boyfriend somehow made him even more attractive to them. His fans – as well-meaning as they were— were relentless.

Sure, Bucky talked about him quite a bit, but they had no idea what Tony’s name was. He always referred to Tony as “my boyfriend” in his broadcasts and videos. He sometimes had fans find him on the street, something that was beginning to happen more and more in his daily life as his popularity continued to grow. It had led to him getting a little paranoid about being seen out with Tony for a while. He’d assured Tony he wanted the man, but he wanted to keep their relationship private and theirs for a while.

Tony’s reaction had been shocking. The other man had hugged Bucky so tightly, his ribs had protested. Bucky could have sworn he even saw a tear at the corner of Tony’s eye, but he couldn’t figure out why.

As Tony stood on his doorstep, the most expensive car Bucky had ever seen parked behind him, Bucky had a feeling he was about to find out.

“What’s going on? What’s with the fancy car?”

“I need to tell you something,” Tony said. “It’s about me, and it’s really big, and I don’t want you to hate me for hiding it from you. I wasn’t even really hiding it. I kind of thought at first that you were just pretending not to know because you were after something, but then I got to know you.”

“Tony.”

“And then you told me you didn’t want any of _your_ growing fame and popularity to interfere with our relationship and wanted to keep me to yourself, and I realized you had no idea.”

“Tony.”

“But by then I was scared to tell you, and I’ve been trying to find a way to do it for weeks, now, and—“

Bucky cut him off, pressing a kiss to the other man’s lips. Tony’s hands immediately went to his hair while Bucky’s hands went to Tony’s waist, pulling him closer. Tony moaned into the kiss when Bucky nibbled at his lower lip before releasing him.

“You were rambling again, Doll,” Bucky grinned.

Tony blushed – a more recent development over the past month, but one Bucky relished in. He loved seeing that blush stain the confident man’s cheeks.

“Sorry,” Tony mumbled. “I’m just… Bucky, I don’t want to lose you.”

“Whatever it is, I’m sure we can work it out,” Bucky soothed, running his hands up and down Tony’s arms in an attempt to comfort him. “Just tell me what’s going on.”

Tony nodded and took a deep breath, then pulled Bucky towards the car. Both of them climbed in, and Bucky turned to watch as Tony started the car. "So what's with the fancy car? Where are we going?"

“The car is mine,” Tony said.

“But this car costs more than Steve’s house!”

“Bucky, I’m about to throw a lot at you about who I am. It’s going to be intense, but I want you to know. I want you to know because I want you to be part of my life for a long time, okay?”

“Okay,” Bucky replied, placing his hand on Tony’s knee and squeezing. “Just… Tell me.”

“No,” Tony said, shaking his head. “I need to show you.”

They were relatively silent as Tony drove them into the heart of the city. Finally, Tony said, “Bucky, I have a question for you.”

“That’s cool, because I have about a _million_ questions for you right now.”

“What’s my last name?”

Bucky blinked, surprised. He hadn’t been expecting that. “What?”

“My last name, Sweetheart. What is it?”

Bucky stared. He racked his brain, but he couldn’t come up with anything. He could have kicked himself. There he was, sitting next to his boyfriend, and he didn’t know the man’s last name. What the hell was wrong with him? “I don’t know. How could I have not… Tony, I’m sorry. I’m horrible.”

“No, you’re not,” Tony soothed. “Do you want to know what it is?”

“Of course!”

“Look up.”

Bucky frowned and looked at the building in front of them. It was Stark Tower.

He stared, confused.

And then it clicked.

“You’re Tony Stark.”

“Yep,” Tony replied, pressing his eyes against his hands, which were still on the steering wheel.

“Oh my god.”

“I know. It’s a lot. I really thought for the longest time that you knew.”

“You’re Tony Stark.”

Tony looked up at that. Bucky was staring at the building in front of them, doing a wonderful impression of a fish.

“Oh, great. I broke you.”

Bucky turned to him, eyes wide. “You’re Tony Stark. You’re… I showed you all my recording equipment. You didn’t say a word about how old it was. You didn’t laugh at me for how cheap all of it was. You just… let me brag.”

Tony gave Bucky a tender smile, his hand reaching out and threading itself into Bucky’s hair. “Sweetheart, do you have any idea what it’s like to have you treat me like a normal person? No one has _ever_ treated me like that. I couldn’t… I got addicted. I didn’t want to lose the way you look at me.”

“Really?”

“You’re the only person I’ve ever been with who will fight me for the bill. You’re the only one who has never expected or asked for a handout. I thought for sure when you showed me that equipment that you’d ask me to upgrade it, but damn it, you were so proud of everything you had. You knew it wasn’t the best, but you were proud of what you had done all on your own, and… Bucky, I love you.”

Bucky launched himself across the car, kissing Tony with every bit of passion he could pour into it. They took turns nipping and sucking on each other’s lips, their tongues dancing together, hands roaming. When they finally pulled apart, they were both gasping for breath. “If that’s the reaction I get when I say that, I’m going to say it every five minutes,” Tony laughed.

“I’ve been wanting to say it to you for months,” Bucky replied, squeezing his eyes shut. “I thought no one would want me after the accident. I was sure no one would want someone so broken, someone who had lost an arm, someone who may not have panic attacks in the middle of the day anymore but can’t shake the nightmares.”

“Sweetheart, there is nothing wrong with you.”

“I know,” Bucky replied. “On some level, I know that. It doesn’t stop those feelings, though. It’s like my anxiety with crowds. I know there’s nothing to be so worked up over, but that doesn’t stop me feeling like I want to be sick.”

“I’d do anything to take all of that away.”

“I know you would,” Bucky said with a smile. “You’re always there when I need you.”

“Move in with me.”

“What?” Bucky asked, eyes wide.

“Move in with me,” Tony said again.

“I’ve never even SEEN your place, and you’re asking me to move in with you?” Bucky asked, laughing.

“I love you. Why not?”

Bucky grinned. “I’d love to move in with you. But there’s so much we need to talk about before we can do that. I need to ask Steve if he’s okay with me dropping in to do my videos, and-“

“Just do them here. I have spare rooms. I’ll set one up for you.”

“Seriously?” Bucky asked, surprised. “You’d be willing to do that for me?”

“Um, well…” Tony looked down and bit his lip.

“Tony, what did you do?”

“Maybe you should come up and see,” Tony grinned.

Bucky frowned but agreed.


	7. Chapter 7

It turned out Tony already had a room set up for Bucky’s videos.

Bucky stared, wide-eyed, at the giant TV, all the latest gaming systems, the huge computer setup, lighting, and everything else he could have possibly needed. Everything was top of the line, and Bucky swallowed in an effort to keep himself from drooling.

“Oh my god.”

“Is this okay?” Tony asked nervously. “I mean, it’s not too much, is it? Or not enough? Did I forget something? I can order it right now. Wait, you drink a lot of water during your videos. I didn’t put anything in here for that. I knew I forgot something! I’ll take care of it, I promi-“

Bucky cut Tony off, pressing their lips together firmly. Bucky drew the kiss out, letting his hands weave their way into Tony’s hair while he sucked and nibbled at the other man’s bottom lip. When he finally pulled away, he pressed his forehead against Tony’s and sighed happily. “Tony, it’s perfect,” Bucky laughed. “I can’t believe you did all of this. You didn’t even know if I would say yes.”

“So it’s okay?”

Bucky smiled and pulled Tony close, pressing a gentle kiss to his cheek. “It’s more than okay, Doll. I was just going to move all of my current stuff over here. You didn’t have to do any of this.”

“You’ve never even asked me to pay for dinner. I have to fight you for the damn bill,” Tony replied. “It makes me happy to be able to spoil the people I care about, and the whole time we’ve been together, I haven’t bought you anything but food and movie tickets. I’m a billionaire. Let me spoil you.”

Bucky snuggled close to Tony and tucked his face against the man’s neck. “Now I understand why everyone said I should have told you about my birthday,” he mumbled to himself.

“Birthday? When was your birthday? Why didn’t you say anything?” Tony demanded as he pulled away, studying Bucky closely.

Bucky could have kicked himself. “Uh, remember when you had that business trip to Tokyo?” Bucky asked.

“Yes.”

“And then you came back early because of that nightmare I had?”

“Yes,” Tony replied again, frowning seriously.

“Well, the nightmare happened on the anniversary of when I lost my arm, which is the day after my birthday,” Bucky admitted sheepishly.

Tony stared. And stared. And stared.

“Tony?” Bucky asked quietly.

“I don’t even know how to process that,” Tony floundered. “There is so much wrong with what you just said. It doesn’t make any sense.”

Bucky tilted his head, confused. “What do you mean it doesn’t make any sense? What doesn’t make sense?”

“First, you didn’t tell me it was your birthday. Everyone _always_ mentions their birthday to me,” Tony huffed. “And second, you didn’t tell me it was the anniversary of you losing your arm. That nightmare and how bad it was makes so much more sense now. And third, you didn’t mention EITHER of those things when I finally got home.”

“I didn’t want you to feel bad,” Bucky shrugged. “It’s not like either of them were a big deal. I was sure the only thing telling you would accomplish was making you feel guilty, so I kept it to myself.”

“But you didn’t tell me about your _birthday_ ,” Tony said again, still struggling with that knowledge. “Everyone has always made _damn_ sure I _knew_ it was their birthday. My presents and parties are _legendary_.”

“Not to me,” Bucky huffed. “Do I need to remind you that to me, you’re just Tony? You’re not Tony Stark in my eyes, Doll. You’re just Tony.”

Tony grinned. “No wonder Clint and Natasha gave me the shovel talk when I got home from that trip,” he mused.

“They did what?” Bucky choked.

“Oh yeah,” Tony said, wrapping his arms around Bucky’s waist. “Clint and Natasha told me if I screwed up my relationship with you, they’d make sure no one ever found my body. And don’t let them fool you; they could do that. Easily.”

“But why would they give _you_ the shovel talk?” Bucky asked, dumbfounded. “They’re _your_ friends. I’m the one who should be getting the shovel talks.”

Tony snorted. “Believe me, Sweetheart, no one is worried about you screwing up. Everyone knows if things go south between us, it will be because I’m the one who screwed up.”

Bucky huffed in annoyance. “Stop putting yourself down like that. You’re an incredible boyfriend.”

“We’ll see if you think that way after living with me for a while,” Tony chuckled. “I don’t keep the most regular hours, I don’t always eat enough because I go on a work binge and forget, and I do the same thing with sleep, too. Not to mention I’m working all the time.”

“And yet you’ve always made time for me and have been there every single time I’ve given so much as a hint that I needed you,” Bucky hummed. “That’s so weird. It’s almost like you care or something.”

“Funny,” Tony laughed. “Okay, now that the surprise didn’t crash and burn, how about a tour?”

Bucky looped his arm with Tony’s and nodded. “Lead the way.”

Tony wasn't like most tour guides because Tony didn't simply go from one room to the next. In fact, he barely lead them in a straight line. As soon as a thought entered his head, he was pulling Bucky off in another direction, only to lead them back to the same hallway minutes later.

Bucky thought it was adorable, watching as Tony tried to pack as much information in as he could while still following his haphazard train of thought.

They made their way down to Tony’s workshop towards the end of the tour. “Okay, this is the workshop,” Tony said, waving a hand to the large area. “There’s only this and my bedroom and bathroom left.”

Bucky looked around, eyes wide. “Did you make all of this?” He asked, jumping when a robot rolled over and started whirring at him excitedly, poking him in the side with its metal arm.”

“DUM-E, be nice! Don’t scare him off,” Tony scolded.

“DUM-E?” Bucky questioned, only to have the robot being whirring and beeping in excitement and spinning in circles. “Uh, what’s it doing?”

“He’s excited to see you,” Tony snorted. “He’s a bot I built in college. He has some AI in him. He’s nothing like JARVIS –remember him from the night we met? I built him, too. But DUM-E here does have a mind of his own. He’s kinda like a puppy.”

“Hi, DUM-E,” Bucky said, holding out his metal hand. The bot beeped in elation and shook Bucky’s hand wildly, making Bucky laugh.

“I think he likes you,” Tony chuckled.

“This is so cool. I knew you were smart, but… This is all so impressive, Doll. Now I know why you made fun of my phone.”

“I need to upgrade that,” Tony nodded to himself. “But you know, you do already have something I invented... Besides the phone. _And_ the equipment upstairs.”

“I do?”

“Yeah,” Tony said, taking Bucky’s metal hand in his and holding it up to his lips so he could kiss it. “I invented this right before you were injured. You were the sole recipient.”

“Are you serious?” Bucky asked, staring between his hand and Tony.

“Yeah, but we couldn’t figure out how to make it something affordable and eventually redesigned the project. We still make them, but they’re nowhere near as advanced as yours. Your arm is one of the greatest things I ever built.”

“I love you,” Bucky said, pulling Tony into another kiss. “Does this mean you can give it a tune-up if I ever need?”

Tony snorted. “Honey, I could do that even if I hadn’t been the one to build it. You break it, I can fix it. Promise.”

Bucky hummed and kissed Tony again, leaning in and cuddling close to the other man. Tony brushed a kiss to the top of his head.

“You’re really willing to give this a try? You’re willing to move in with me?”

Bucky grinned and kissed Tony again. “On one condition.”

Tony felt butterflies rise up in his stomach as he nodded seriously. “Anything. You name it.”

“I need to try out your bed. You know, make sure I can sleep in it okay and that I like the sheets. The sheets can be a major deal-breaker.”

Tony laughed at that and kissed Bucky, pulling him close. He nipped at Bucky’s bottom lip, then whispered in his ear. “That can be arranged. Right now. Let’s go.”

Tony grabbed Bucky’s hand and dragged him down the hallway, both of them laughing.


	8. Chapter 8

It had been an incredibly long day.

Three weeks ago, someone leaked security software secrets. Stark Industries had been dealing with hackers and gleeful competitors ever since. Tony was furious and had taken it upon himself to personally interview – sorry, interrogate – every possible person who could have had their hand in it.

He hadn’t been able to pin it on anyone yet, but he had identified seventeen people who posed security risks of some sort and had them removed. It was horrible and he hated it. It was so bad and so terrifying to everyone at the company that they were starting to call him The Executioner.

That was not the kind of boss he wanted to be, and it killed him. Tony bent over backward for the people under his employ, and there he was, reigning terror on them.

Tony loosened his tie and leaned back in his chair. He reached over and pressed the button that would allow him to talk directly to his assistant. “Pepper, can you have R&D send up the latest report to me?”

There was no answer.

“Pepper?”

“Miss Potts sent you an e-mail, Sir. She left over two hours ago.”

“What?” Tony asked, surprised. “Why the hell did she leave?”

"She was already three hours past her normal leave time, Sir. You were in a conference call and did not wish to be disturbed.”

Tony took a deep breath and held it for a moment, exhaling explosively as he ran one hand down his face. “Damn,” he sighed. He looked over to one side of his desk to see a picture of Bucky and couldn’t help smiling a little.

Bucky had no idea the picture existed; Tony actually had JARVIS to thank for it. Bucky had been laughing - at what Tony didn’t remember. It was a full-body laugh, one hand on his stomach and his head tilted back as he laid on their couch. His hair was damp and he’d only been wearing a pair of faded and well-worn sweatpants.

Tony thought he looked beautiful.

Tony didn’t know how he’d gotten so lucky. Good things like Bucky just didn’t happen to him, and if they did, they certainly didn’t last. Good things were strictly temporary in Tony’s life, but somehow he’d managed to find the one person who didn’t know him as Tony Stark, the genius, billionaire, playboy philanthropist. With Bucky, he could actually be himself.

At first, he thought Bucky was playing some sort of elaborate game with him. Bucky was so attractive, though, that he was entirely unable to resist playing along. He’d get the man into bed, hopefully more than once, and then the game would be over.

But somehow, he’d managed to squeeze six… no… seven… eight? Seven or eight months out of the man, which meant Bucky had beaten his previous relationship-record by at least two months already.

And the most shocking part was that they'd managed to keep it a secret for so long. Tony's love life was a media favorite. He was a celebrity, and Bucky would be his first confirmed relationship with someone who did not come with a pair of breasts. That would be front-page news.

In addition to that, Bucky had quite a following of his own. Bucky talked about Tony in his videos, and everyone knew Bucky had a boyfriend, but everyone pretty much assumed it was Steve. Bucky was pictured with Steve all the time.

The speculation bothered Bucky, since Tony was his boyfriend, but Tony just shrugged it off. He knew where Bucky slept every night, after all…

Which was where he should be sleeping at that moment. Tony winced when he spotted the clock; it was no wonder Pepper had left hours ago.

Tony grabbed his jacket, phone, and briefcase and headed for the elevator and then to his car. There was nowhere else he'd rather be in that moment than at home with his boyfriend. For some reason, it felt like forever since he'd spent any time with the guy.

Traffic was light, probably due to the ridiculously late hour. It was fast approaching midnight. He parked his car in the garage and made his way upstairs and into the living room. He was going to go straight to the bedroom, but the exhaustion was finally hitting him. He could hear Bucky’s voice as he played a game in the media room Tony had set up for him, so Tony decided to wait for him.

Tony collapsed on the couch, toed his shoes off and put his feet up on the table. “God, this feels good,” he moaned as he sank into the couch. As soon as he spoke, he heard Bucky signing off from his game. “JARVIS, remind me not to move again.”

“I believe I can name more than one person who would object to that request, Sir.”

“Damn right,” Bucky replied as he sauntered in, eating something out of a glass with a spoon.

“Oooh, what’s that?” Tony asked, lifting his head. “Looks good. Feed me,” he said, opening his mouth and sticking his tongue out.

Bucky snorted, giving the spoon an exaggerated lick. He smirked as he watched the heat in Tony’s eyes intensify. “Get your own milkshake,” Bucky replied. “You should have let me know you were on your way home. I would have had dinner ready. I’ll go start it while you’re in the shower.”

“Or,” Tony said, his hand darting out to grab Bucky’s. “You could join me in the shower and we’ll have something delivered.”

“We’ve ordered something or just skipped dinner every night for the last three weeks,” Bucky pouted. “Believe it or not, I would actually like to cook something for my boyfriend.”

“It hasn’t been three weeks,” Tony protested. “It’s been like… three days.”

“JARVIS, how long has it been since Tony or I made dinner?” Bucky asked, crossing his arms as he stared at Tony.

“It has been 23 days, Master Barnes,” JARVIS replied.

Tony sputtered, and Bucky smirked in triumph. “And guess what else?”

“What?” Tony asked tightly.

“We haven’t done anything in our bed together besides sleep for two weeks. We haven’t watched a movie together since before I moved in with you. Hell, I don’t think you’ve spent more than an hour with me and actually been awake in about two weeks. It’s like you’re bored of me now that I’ve moved in, which was a month ago _today_ , by the way. I figured you probably forgot about that.”

Tony’s expression looked pained for a moment, but it went away quickly. If Bucky were anyone else, he probably would have missed it. He certainly would have missed the look in Tony’s eyes. Tony looked like he’d been gutted. Bucky’s heart twisted painfully.

Tony felt resignation overwhelm him. “So that’s it, huh?” Tony said as he got up, making his way towards the kitchen.

Bucky frowned; that hadn’t been the reaction he was expecting. He’d been expecting Tony to rush them off to bed, not… whatever this was. He followed the other man into the kitchen, where Tony started making coffee even though it was approaching midnight. “Tony?” Bucky murmured, feeling unsure of himself. “I’m sorry, Tony, I just-“

“No, it’s okay,” Tony replied, shrugging. “I warned you before you moved in that my life was like this.”

“Wait, what?” Bucky asked, startled. “What are you-“

“I told you I’m hard to live with. Honestly, you lasted longer than I expected. Kudos to you for that. You can take everything from the media room with you when you go,” Tony said. “It’s not like I need it, so you might as well.”

“Tony, stop,” Bucky pleaded, reaching for him, but the man twisted out of the way without even making it look intentional. How the hell did he do that?

“Seriously, I understand,” Tony shrugged. “I’ll be down in my workshop, so if you need something, tell Jarvis. He can schedule movers or whatever else you need.”

Bucky stared, dumbfounded, as Tony retreated into his workshop. “Lockdown, JARVIS, and don’t you dare say anything to him unless it has to do with helping him move out,” Tony said as soon as the door closed behind him.

“Sir, I really must advise against-“

“Did you do it?” Tony snapped.

“Yes, Sir, but again, I advise that you-“

“Mute.”

Jarvis fell silent. Everything fell silent, save for the voice in Tony’s head berating him for being surprised. After all, Bucky was perfect. The man was amazingly and mind-blowingly perfect, and Tony had disregarded him pretty much as soon as he moved in. It was a miracle the man had waited a month to call it quits.

Tony growled and grabbed the closest tool, throwing it as hard as he could against a wall. He ignored tears as they slid down his face.


	9. Chapter 9

Bucky slid down the wall and pulled his knees to his chest, feeling like his heart was breaking. He pulled out his phone and managed to call Clint.

“Barton.”

“I need your help,” Bucky said.

“Bucky? Hey, man, what’s up?”

“Tony locked me out of the workshop. I need to know if there is any possible way I can break in. I know you love climbing around in vents, so I figured you were the one to call.”

“He locked _you_ out?” Clint asked, sounding surprised. “What the hell did that idiot do?”

“How do you know it wasn’t me?”

Clint scoffed. “First, I spent all day gaming with you yesterday and listening to you wax poetic about him. Second, Tony has a knack for screwing things up. Tony doesn’t actually believe that good things happen to him, so he always manages to screw them up when they do happen because he keeps waiting for the other shoe to drop. If they don’t, he throws the damn shoe himself.”

“I don’t actually know what happened,” Bucky confessed, running a hand through his hair. “I was trying to get him to let me cook dinner rather than ordering out again because we’ve hardly spent any time together since I moved in. He took that as me telling him I was done with him and wanted to move out.”

“Typical,” Clint sighed. “Okay, here’s what you’re going to do.”

Clint gave Bucky detailed instructions on how to get to the workshop with the vents. Bucky thanked him and then made his way into the kitchen.

He wanted to make the man dinner, and damn it, he was going to do just that.

Bucky grabbed a picnic basket he’d bought last week and filled it with a variety of fruits and drinks. Then, he made Tony’s favorite subs. Finally, he grabbed a plate of chocolate chip cookies – also Tony’s favorite – and made sure the basket was secure. Then he made his way to the vents.

Navigating the vents with a picnic basket was challenging, but Bucky was determined. There was no way he was going to let something stupid make him lose the best damn thing that had ever happened to him.

Bucky picked up a grate and pulled it out of the way. He looked down to make sure nothing was in his way, grabbed his picnic basket, and jumped.

Tony started, spinning around when he heard the noise. His eyes were red and there were tear tracks running down his face. Bucky felt his heart break a bit more. He sat the basket aside and held his arms out for Tony.

“Sugar, get over here,” he said gently.

Tony bit his lip, looking for a moment like he was going to resist, before he fell into Bucky’s arms.

“I thought you’d be gone by now,” Tony murmured, burying his face in Bucky’s neck.

“You can’t get rid of me that easy,” Bucky soothed, wrapping his arms firmly around Tony’s waist. He led the man over to the couch and sat down, pulling Tony close so they were cuddling. “How about you tell me what’s going on in that genius brain of yours?” Bucky asked, running a hand soothingly through Tony’s hair.

“I’ve neglected you. Do you have any idea how many relationships my job has ruined for me? When you told me I’d been ignoring you for a month, I thought that was it. It _should_ be it. You shouldn’t be giving me another chance after that. You deserve better.”

“You think too much,” Bucky murmured, pressing a kiss to the top of Tony’s head. “All I wanted was to make you dinner, Sugar. I know you work a lot. Pepper called when she left and said you were in a conference call, but you hadn’t had dinner. You’ve looked so stressed lately, so I just wanted to do something nice.”

“But I treated you like—“

“Tony, stop,” Bucky ordered. “No, this month hasn’t been great, but I’m trying to tell you I understand and I’m not mad. I’m trying to tell you I still love you.”

Tony squeezed him but didn't look up.

Bucky sighed sadly. “Tony, Doll, if you want me to leave because you don’t want to be with me anymore, then I will. But if you want me to leave because you think it’s what _I_ want, then you can shove it. You don’t get to decide what I want, and what I want is you. Just you.”

“I don’t want you to go,” Tony mumbled into Bucky’s neck. “I never want you to go. I need you.”

“I need you, too,” Bucky whispered into Tony’s hair. “Now sit up for a second. I have a surprise.”

Tony sat up and turned away from Bucky for a moment, Bucky’s heart twisting a little when he realized Tony was trying to wipe away his tears. Bucky quickly retrieved the picnic basket and made his way back over to the couch.

“I wanted to make you dinner, so that’s what I did,” he said as he began pulling different items out.

Tony’s eyes widened. “Bucky…”

Bucky grinned as he held out a strawberry to Tony. Tony grinned and took a bite.

“Hey, my favorite!” Tony exclaimed happily when Bucky handed him the sandwich. Bucky chuckled and kissed Tony’s cheek as they both ate. Neither of them spoke, but Tony couldn’t seem to take his eyes off Bucky. It was almost like he thought Bucky would disappear if he looked away.

When they finally finished Bucky cleaned everything up. He grabbed the cookies and then turned to Tony, who hadn’t spotted the cookies yet.

“You’re beautiful,” Bucky said as he placed a gentle hand on Tony’s cheek. “I love you, Tony,” he said, pressing a kiss to Tony’s lips.

Tony closed his eyes and squeezed his knee. “I love you,” Tony replied softly.

“I made you something else while you were at work,” Bucky murmured.

“You did?” Tony asked, looking surprised.

“Your favorite,” Bucky grinned as he placed the package of cookies in Tony’s hands. “I have more upstairs, but for now…”

Tony’s eyes widened when he unwrapped the cookies. “Bucky… Sweetheart, why did you do this? Why did you do _any_ of this?”

“I made the cookies this morning. You haven’t told me why but I could tell it’s been a rough month for you, so I thought you deserved something nice. Then, with the picnic, I just thought I needed to remind you how much I love you.”

Tony’s eyes watered. “I don’t deserve you.”

“Yes, you do,” Bucky replied easily, kissing Tony gently.

“We had someone spill some company secrets,” Tony said as he dug into the cookies. Bucky’s eyes widened at the news, but he didn’t say anything.

“I’ve been busting my ass trying to fix it. Most of the people at the company are kind of terrified of me at the moment. It’s been awful, but I think it’s almost fixed. I just need more time to rework some of the software issues, but I’m always so busy directing R&D that I don’t have time.”

“Why don’t you appoint someone to manage R&D while you’re not there?” Bucky asked. “That would give you time to fiddle with the software, right? He could manage and report directly to you, and you could still drop in whenever you want. Maybe you could even come home for dinner sometimes.”

Tony bit his lip. “It’s a good idea. There’s this one guy, Marcus, I’ve been watching since he was at MIT. He’s been working with us for about five years, now –mostly with my supervision, actually. He knows what he’s doing. He’d probably be great at it.”

“So give it a trial run,” Bucky shrugged. “If it doesn’t work, then it doesn’t work. Maybe you won’t _want_ him to do it except for once in a while when things like this come up. But if it can give you a break and give him some added experience, this might be a good thing.”

“I’ll talk to Pepper. If she approves, I’ll have Clint and Natasha look into the kid and make sure there’s nothing I missed before I put him in charge of something so sensitive.”

Bucky smiled. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome, Sweetheart.”


	10. Chapter 10

_One Year In_

_“Okay, guys, I’ll be live in 10 minutes! Get ready!”_

As soon as Bucky sent the tweet out, he turned back to his setup to double-check that everything was in place. His webcam, microphone, and lighting were all perfectly in place, and he had his computer screens in just the right positions where he would still be looking towards the camera while he read everyone’s responses. Live videos –especially the ones where he wasn’t even gaming – were very rare for him, but when he did do them, the turnout was always impressive.

“Tony, make sure you steer clear of the media room!” Bucky shouted down the hallway. “I’m doing a live thing in a few minutes.”

“Uh huh, that’s awesome, Babe,” Tony replied, one hand adjusting his tie and the other on his phone. Bucky rolled his eyes.

“Do you have any idea what I just said?” Bucky asked.

“Anything you want,” Tony said. “No, not you, Marcus, I was talking to someone else.”

Bucky grinned and shook his head. Tony had finally made Marcus the new supervisor of R&D. They were in the middle of a huge product that was almost ready for the next phase, and Tony had been putting in a lot of extra hours working on it. Whatever it was, it was top-secret. Even Bucky didn’t know what it was, since Tony was determined to make it a surprise.

A quick glance at the clock told him he had five minutes. He thought about shutting the door and locking Tony out since he knew Tony probably didn’t hear him, but shrugged the idea off. Tony would see he was filming and just wave goodbye. It wasn’t like the fans didn’t know he had a boyfriend; they just didn’t know the most popular YouTuber was dating Tony Stark.

How they’d managed to keep it a secret for so long was beyond him. He did tend to blend into the crowd on instinct thanks to his military training, so maybe that was what helped. That, and everyone thought he was dating Steve… Gross.

The one time someone did almost catch them, Tony’s wallet was more than enough persuasion to keep their secret.

Damn, he loved that man.

Bucky grabbed a bottle of water and sat it off-camera but well within reach as he clicked his camera on. He gave everything one last test, although why he bothered anymore was a wonder because Tony bought everything and Tony wouldn't get him anything that would break in a matter of months. Once he was sure everything was ready to go, it was time. With a simple mouse-click, he was officially streaming live.

“Hey, guys!” Bucky grinned, giving the camera a smile and a wave. “It's been a while! Thank you so much for all the new subscribers out there. I couldn't believe it when my boyfriend told me I'd officially entered the list of the top ten YouTubers with the most subscribers. I would never have believed that many people would be interested in what I have to say, but here you guys are. So as promised, let’s have a Q&A!”

Bucky grinned and looked back at the computer screen, seeing the questions and comments scrolling through. His eyes widened when he saw not only how many people were watching, but how fast the comments were scrolling. “Holy shit,” he laughed, leaning forward a bit. “You guys have a ton of questions. I’m not sure I can read them that fast. I’m probably going to have to pause them or something.”

Bucky hit a few keys and slowed the rate of comments down. “There we go. Maybe now I can actually read them! Okay, let’s see...” Bucky paused, reading through the comments begging him to say hi to them or saying they loved him, and found an actual question. “Jonas from Minnesota asks why I changed sets. Hey, I never did a video about that, did I?”

Bucky laughed to himself. “Most of you will remember I changed sets about six months ago. As you all know, I was living with my best friend Steve. He’s that blonde guy everyone keeps accusing me of dating, which is just weird. That would be like dating my brother.”

“Anyway, I moved out of Steve’s place and moved in with my boyfriend. He surprised me with a room in his place where I can make my videos and game. It’s awesome and so much better than that little corner I had in my bedroom at Steve’s place.”

Bucky turned back to his computer screen and scrolled a bit, looking for a new question. "Mary, from England, asks whether I'll play the next Call of Duty. The answer to that, Mary, is, of course, I will. I try all of them. I may decide after a week that I hate it and never touch it again, but every game I try gets a week-long trial period."

The questions kept coming. For the most part, he avoided the ones about his boyfriend, worried he’d slip up and say Tony’s name. Instead, he stuck to the miscellanies questions or the ones related to military or gaming.

Bucky had been answering questions for half an hour and was in the middle of answering another one when it happened.

“So anyway, Steve was soaked from head to toe, and the only clean shirt he had was this pink one with a unicorn on it-“

Bucky’s eyes widened when he felt a kiss pressed to his cheek. “I’m going into the office, Sweetheart,” Tony said as he held his phone against his shoulder in order to prevent the person listening on the other end from hearing them.

“Tony, what—“

“Love you,” Tony said as he pressed a lingering kiss to Bucky’s lips. Then he was gone.

Bucky gaped after him. Slowly he turned back to the computer screens. To his horror, the number of viewers had increased dramatically, as had the rate of comments asking him questions about Tony.

They hadn’t planned to reveal their relationship yet. In fact, they hadn’t discussed it except for one time when Bucky asked how Tony would feel if everyone found out. Tony had said he was happy to keep the relationship private, but he would be just as happy to be able to show off his boyfriend to everyone.

Hopefully, he still felt that way.

Bucky sighed and shook his head. “Well, I guess that cat’s out of the bag,” he said, grinning sheepishly at the camera. “And apparently he’s left me alone to deal with the aftermath of him outing us, although he’s been pretty scatterbrained lately so I doubt he did it on purpose. I see the comments are getting really out of hand, so I’m just going to dump some information on all of you. That will probably be easier.”

Bucky took a deep breath. “Yes, that was Tony Stark. Yes, he kissed me, and yes, he’s my boyfriend. Tony and I have been together for about a year now, and I’ve been living with him for about six months, as I said in an earlier question. Now, I'm not going to say anything else until I talk to him, and until I can force him to help me deal with the inevitable media storm he's just created, so I'm going to go ahead and sign off."

"I hate to kiss and run, but… well… We'll do something like this again soon. Tune into my social media accounts to keep yourselves posted for when I make a more formal announcement!"

Bucky ended the broadcast and took a few deep breaths, feeling like he was on the verge of panicking.

Hopefully Tony wouldn’t be too upset once he realized what he had done.


	11. Chapter 11

“Tony!”

Tony looked up to see Pepper storming into his office. “Hello, Pep!”

Before he could get another word out, Pepper scowled. “Tony, please explain to me why I have calls from every major media outlet begging for an exclusive interview with you and Bucky,” she growled. “What did you do?”

Tony frowned in confusion. “Why would they want an exclusive with me and Bucky? How do they even know about Bucky?”

“That would be your fault, Sir,” JARVIS replied. “I have Mr. Barnes on the line if you wish for me to patch him through.”

Tony nodded and smiled when Bucky’s face appeared before him. “Bucky, sweetheart!” Tony exclaimed. “Pepper just said the weirdest thing.”

“I need you to get me a new phone number,” Bucky huffed. “And probably a new phone, because by the time this is over, I’m going to throw this damn thing across the room. How did they even get my number so fast? It hasn’t even been an hour.”

Tony frowned in confusion. The anxiety on Bucky’s face, especially in his eyes, was clear, even though he wasn’t there in person. That kicked Tony’s protective streak into overdrive. “What are you talking about? Who has your number?”

“Everyone!” Bucky said, flinging his hands in the air. “It was private when it was just me, but the world finds out you’re dating Tony Stark and suddenly it’s public information.”

"How the hell did they find out?" Tony asked, shocked. "We haven't even been anywhere together outside of the apartment in the last 48 hours."

“Yeah, well, you barged in on me while I was doing a live video and kissed me. Millions of people saw it live, Sugar.”

“When the hell was that!?”

Bucky smacked his palm against his forehead. “I’m forbidding you from attempting to multi-task if you keep this up,” he sighed. “This morning while you were on the phone with Marcus I told you that I was doing a live video. 30 minutes later, you walked in and kissed me goodbye. Live. In front of thousands of people.”

Tony, Bucky, and Pepper all stared at each other. Tony swallowed a few times nervously. "Oops?" he said with an innocent shrug and a smile. "I swear that was an accident."

“Of course it was,” Bucky snorted. “You’re like a dog that saw a squirrel when you’re trying to do too much at once. I confirmed on the live video that we were together before I signed off. I told them I wasn’t dealing with the aftermath of it all on my own.”

“Of course not,” Tony scoffed. “Pepper, set up an interview with someone. I don’t care who. Someone who won’t put Bucky through the ringer. Set it up ASAP.”

“Why don’t you just do a live video with Bucky?” she asked. “He already has the audience, and you don’t have to worry about anyone twisting your words or asking you uncomfortable questions. Bucky wouldn’t have to worry about being in front of a live audience he could actually see, either.”

“I’m game if you are,” Bucky replied. “I’d like to get it over with tonight, though, because I have a feeling it will take a while for the media to die down and I’m so not leaving our home until they stop stalking us outside.”

“They’re already outside?”

“Yep,” Bucky said, the ‘p’ making a popping sound.

Tony sighed. “I’m on my way home. I’ll save you from the scary reporters and paparazzi.”

“My hero,” Bucky said with a grin as he hung up.

Sure enough, the reporters were out in droves. The parking garage at Stark Industries was isolated so he got to his car with little problem, but he had to drive slowly to avoid hitting anyone. Much to his disgust, the situation was similar once he got home.

“Exclusive video tonight at six pm on Bucky’s channel – spread the word!” Tony shouted as he passed them and drove into his garage.

Tony rushed into the elevator and over to Bucky. Bucky grinned wearily, holding his phone, which was ringing.

“JARVIS, get him a new phone number and switch this phone over,” Tony said, grabbing the phone and plugging it in.

“Right away, Sir.”

“You didn’t have to rush home,” Bucky said, wrapping his arms around Tony’s neck.

“I can see the anxiety in your eyes,” Tony murmured, threading his fingers into Bucky’s hair. “I know I didn’t have to, but I did it anyway.”

“Thank you,” Bucky murmured. “You sure you’re okay with the world knowing you’re dating a man? Dating me? You could probably get away with denying the whole thing.”

“Are you kidding me?” Tony growled. “I learned my lesson months ago. I’m not sending you away. The only way you’re getting rid of me is if you tell me you don’t love me anymore.”

Bucky’s eyes lit up and he smiled. “I love you,” he sighed, pulling Tony in for a kiss. The kiss was loving and slow, reassuring each other that everything was okay.

“You know our world is going to change after this,” Tony said, placing his hand gently on Bucky’s cheek. “It’s a gift that we got a year of privacy.”

“You’re worth it,” Bucky said without hesitation.

Tony grinned. “I’m glad you think so.”

“How about I show you how much I think you’re worth it?” Bucky leered, making Tony laugh as the other man led him into the bedroom.

By the time six pm rolled around, Bucky and Tony had already showered. Twice. Bucky was nervous, but he seemed better as long as Tony kept holding his hand.

“How about we do this in the living room?” Tony suggested. We can cuddle on the couch and Jarvis can display the questions for us. I’ll set everything up if you want.”

“Oh, God, would you?” Bucky pleaded as he paced in the kitchen. “I don’t know why I’m so nervous, but I feel like I’m about to be interrogated.”

“Nonsense,” Tony chuckled as he set up cameras and some lighting. He even moved in a backdrop to hide everything behind the couch. Once he was done, he took both of Bucky’s hands in his and led him over to the couch. Bucky smiled when he saw there were even water bottles on the table in front of them.

“I’ll do all the talking, if you want,” Tony continued. “If you get uncomfortable or don’t know what to say, just squeeze my hand and I’ll take over. I was born to handle the media and interviews, so interviewing myself will be a piece of cake.”

Bucky settled into the couch, curling against Tony and laying his head on his boyfriend’s shoulder. “I don’t know how I’d get through life without you,” Bucky sighed happily. “As long as I have you, everything will be okay.”

Tony grinned and kissed him. “Are you ready?” Tony asked.

Bucky grinned. “Yeah. I’m ready.”

Jarvis displayed questions as soon as they started rolling in. Bucky was proud to note that he never once felt overwhelmed the entire time. Tony was brilliant, clearly born to be in front of the camera. Bucky leaned his head on Tony’s shoulder and felt the other man wrap an arm around him. He smiled shyly when he saw comments gushing about how cute they were together.

They had started with the story of how they met, much to Bucky’s embarrassment, talked about their first date, their first fight, what it was like living with the other, and even how they felt about everyone knowing they were together.

“I think that’s about it for one night,” Tony said, grinning. “It’s been real!”

“Actually,” Bucky said nervously, “There’s one more thing I need to say.”

Tony raised an eyebrow. “You sure?” he asked. “You don’t really look like you want to say it.”

Bucky laughed. “I’m terrified, but if I don’t do it now, there’s no telling when I’ll work up the nerve.”

“Okay, Sweetheart,” Tony nodded, smiling and squeezing Bucky’s hand.

Bucky took a deep breath. “It’s not our actual relationship anniversary, but one year ago today, I met you for the first time. A lot has changed since then, but there’s also a lot of things that haven’t. I couldn’t care less that you’re Tony Stark,” Bucky said. “All that has ever mattered to me since the first day I met you was that you’re Tony. Who you are to me is what’s important – not your fame, not your money, none of that. What I care about is the fact that you’ve been there every time I have needed you. You’ve held me through nightmares and panic attacks. Thanks to you, I’ve gained some of my confidence back.”

“Sweetheart-“

“Not yet, Sugar; I’m not done,” Bucky said. “I’m proud of the fact that now, when people ask me who you are to me, I can say you’re my boyfriend. But Tony… I want you to be more than that to me. I love you. I want to wake up every day knowing I’m _always_ going to have the one person who anchors me no matter whether the waters are calm or I’m stuck in a hurricane. So…”

Bucky took a deep breath and slid from the couch to one knee. With shaking hands, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small box. Inside was a beautiful silver band that matched the color of Bucky’s arm with a ruby in the center. “Tony, will you marry me?”

 Tony blinked once, then twice…. Then he smiled.

“I’d be a fool to let you go,” he replied, pulling Bucky off the floor. Bucky supported himself with his metal arm as he slid the ring onto Tony’s finger. The two sprawled across the couch and kissed, pouring all of the love they had built for each other over the course of that year into the kiss. Bucky propped himself up with the metal arm to keep himself from crushing Tony while the other hand slid under his shirt. Tony groaned into the kiss, one hand finding Bucky’s hair while the other drifted down to his ass.

Neither of them noticed as JARVIS ended the broadcast.

**Author's Note:**

> Follow me on [Tumblr!](http://cognizantcatastrophe.tumblr.com)

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [[Banner] Who You Are To Me](https://archiveofourown.org/works/8063083) by [Knowmefirst](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Knowmefirst/pseuds/Knowmefirst)




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